Small steps

Email sent earlier today...

Hey Im,

Here is my church's location - 5710 KENNEDY RD

The name of the church is called Mississauga Chinese Alliance Church. We have a service at 9:30. You can come by around 10..if you want. Afterwards at 11 we are going to have a light snack and cake. You can join us.

If any questions, just ask me. See you this Sun.

Cliff

A Creative God at play

D is a 70 yr old man that live in Mississauga. He is a competitive rower and since I am a triathlete, we have a lot in common in regards to racing and competition.

D is unemployed, struggling to pay bills and has family problems as well.

Through the years of hanging out with him, it is cool to see God working in his life. I remembered him asking me who Christians are how they are diff than Catholics. He frequents a fellowship at a Baptist church. One of his students invited him to go to a church. So God is working. No question about that.

I had been taking courses at Mac Div on a part time basis. I have to write papers and my grammar is horrible (you can tell by my posts :DDD). D use to be an English teacher, I asked him to proof read my papers. I paid D for it. Afterall, work is work.

While having pho tonight and chatting about some of his life problems, it dawned on me at how creative God is working among all this.

Look at the situation. He needed money and do not know God. I needed someone to edit my grammar ridden errors papers for seminary. I was given the opportunity to connect two and two together.

Now he get some money (for work, no charity case here) and my paper is a witness to who God is. I prayed that God can use this process to work on D's heart.

D added this in my paper:

Your experiences are gratifying I would think now you can put all this to future use in helping others, something you do well at and I'm sure will excel at in the future.

Your friend D

Thanx 4 being a part of my life

...

This is an example of a Creative God at play. I never planned this from the beginning. God worked through me without realizing it. Is ok. I am just a tool anyways. I was merely a spectator caught at the glimpse of a God not only going after the lost but also provide an avenue to reduce poverty. Praise the LORD!

D told me he had been reading about Hannah and the birth of Samuel...awesome!! :)

Christmas Lunch...

"Where's everyone?" My pastor asked as I was setting chairs and the tables in the social hall.

I replied, "I do not know. They should be coming."

Yesterday was an unusual Saturday. My normal routine was to go to the Y, swim, then bike for a few hours. Instead, I found myself in my church's social hall.

My church was having a lunch potluck. A brother worked at a shelter and he invited a number of guests to join us. For the past few Christmas our congregation had a celebration. Last year it was a buffet.

I reflected on Luke 14 when Jesus told the Pharisees...."do not invite your friends, your brothers or relatives, or your rich neighbors....when you give a reception, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame and the blind..."

Jesus' words ring loudly in my heart. And so, this year around, we invited those who we don't normally hang out with.

As my pastor and I continued to set up the tables, more people showed up. First those who prepared food. Then a few university students. As more and more showed up, we pray before we get started.

My heart was already racing by then. My mind was some where else. I was thinking the next step and next item to do. Get the cooks, prepare the food, find out how much cultery we need, get the drivers here, designate pick up locations.....

We pause for a few min and prayed. I was in a lost for words.

And we were off. We pulled the drivers together. It turned out one of the sisters had a van and I don't have to rent a van (YAY!). We picked the people from various locations.

Soon the social hall of my church were filled with people. People who normally don't come to my church. Maybe they have never went to a church before. What's even more spectacular were seeing my church engaging with them. We invited them. We chatted with them. We shared a meal. We laughed and talked.

This Sun Service, my pastor read out a response by one of the guests. He mentioned how he enjoyed our company and how we treat him with sincerity and dignity. I was in tears. I stopped and said:

"This is how a church suppose to be."

Albert Benjamin Simpson, founder of Christian and Missionary Alliance, once said...

"..a church that can be ... home of every form of help and blessing which Jesus came to give to lost and suffering men..."

I do not have much to stay or response. I am still soaking in the moment. I am joyful that my church was able to stand against the sad and sinful world and shared a meal. I know that this ain't just the end. Rather a beginning. Where we can re-imagine what a church can and meant to be. May the Spirit use this to move people's heart. To move my congregation's heart so we see ourselves as the light of Mississauga and the surrounding. And the heart of the guests, that they find shelter, comfort, hope and strength through You.

Here's a response from one of the brother who partake with the lunch yesterday:

"My prayer is God will open our church more times to the people in shelters and bless those who have come to the church and regenerate their soul with the gift of salvation from the Lord, and use us effectively so they will see the Lord Jesus in us and humble us to serve them with the love of Jesus, and build meaningful relationship with them so they will know the Lord and increase their faith in the Lord Christ Jesus. AMEN!"

I couldn't say it any better.

It's good to be used. Especially when the I am use for things that will not be lost by rust or moths.

A life of outreach? Or an outreach life?

Sometimes I wonder what if I consider every day night as an outreach event.

Going to the YMCA to do a few miles repeat. Outreach event.

Going to work. Outreach event.

Going to Moe's to pick up a burrito. Outreach event.

I think sometimes when we think about outreach, we have to spend a lot of time and effort to prepare. Say print gospel tracts. Get this and that. It is almost like we have to switch mode.

I ain't to putting down on outreach event. I am just wondering. Let say my church does 2-3 Outreach event a year. What if we 'decentralize' and outreach everywhere and everyday? So instead of having 2-3 Outreach events a year, we can in theory have 365 mini outreach events a year.

To some, this might sound odd. To some (those who are missional) this might sound, 'duh..this is what you are suppose to do'

Sometimes it is worthwhile for church to focus on outreach events.

Tonight at the YMCA while I was taking a shower (note: it might be graphical :P but I just did a few miles repeat and I was drenched in sweat....I am sure my fellowship whom I attended afterwards glad I took a shower).

I was thinking about this? Is my church training the people to outreach on their own? Or are we training our people to be good at preparing events that outreach others? Are my church members equip to outreach/evangelism/share the gospel?

As I was thinking, one of the guy in the shower was chatting up on finding cheap places to park in downtown. I overheard and told him to park at Ryerson. We met up later in the locker room and talked some more. I got his name. He told me he comes to the Y regularly. Great. Me too. Next time I am going to ask him to come to my church's Xmas lunch.

Why think about outreach when I can be outreaching every day (and night).